2013 in the horizon
BARELY has the smoke of the 2010 elections settled but pundits at the Iloilo City hall can already hear the sound of war trumpets in 2013.
The assignment (or shall we say mad scramble) of committee chairmanship in the Sangguniang Panlungsod is being used as barometer of the political landscape three years from now.
Mayor Jerry Treñas, who will represent Iloilo City to Congress starting June 30, is reportedly pushing his bilas, Vice Mayor-elect Jose Espinosa III, to chair the committee on education and Iloilo City Sports Council.
These two committees, while seemingly nondescript, have massive resources and can gather a critical mass of political supporters.
If Espinosa chairs the committee on education, he automatically sits in the Local School Board which allocates the multi-million Special Education Fund exacted from real property taxes collected by the city.
A simple dole-out of free school supplies and uniforms and construction of school buildings are enough to endear a politician to parents and teachers alike.
The sports council is also an effective vehicle to reach out to the youth who mostly comprise the electorate. Seasonal basketball tournaments in the next three years will surely stamp the name of the council chairman in the minds of young voters.
There are no laws barring Joe III from accepting committee chairmanships and special bodies under the executive department. But if he assumes the two posts, we can see the scenario three years from now.
Joe III’s surprising victory over his chief rival Councilor Julienne Baronda, who led pre-election surveys by a mile, may have emboldened Treñas to start putting up the foundations of their own Kamag-anak, Inc. in the city.
Treñas seems to be grooming his bilas Joe III for the number one office in the city hall. What will happen to their alliance with Mayor-elect Jed Mabilog then?
So much for the Jerry-Jed-Joe trio.
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If this early our newly-elected officials are pre-occupied with their political plans three years from now, what will happen to pressing problems of the city?
In the aftermath of heavy rains last Tuesday and Wednesday, major streets in downtown Iloilo City were inundated. One particular area is Valeria Street near The Atrium mall which suddenly became a brook after an hour’s rain.
How can we ever implement the so-called comprehensive drainage plan of Treñas, which remains a promise to date, if they are already warming up for the 2013 elections?
What about the monstrosity called traffic jam in the city which we will all suffer when classes open next month? Or the poor garbage disposal system in the city which poses serious threats to public health?
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Iloilo Vice Governor-elect Richard Garin said he wants to democratize the allocation of working committees in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan to avoid obstructions to the administration of Governor-elect Arthur Defensor Sr.
But Garin said second-term board members will be given the chance to select the committees they want to head before new or returning members are given their slot.
Unlike the city hall, all is quiet in the capitol. Or is it?
If Garin can muscle unity among the board members, then it will be a cinch for Gov. Art to implement reforms in the provincial government after the tumultuous nine-year term of Gov. Niel Tupas Sr.
Provincial officials seem to be more focused on the work ahead compared to their contemporaries at the city hall.
The canvassing of votes in the automated elections proves this point. Iloilo City candidates and their lawyers clawed at each other and even resorted to mobbing the canvassing area.
On the other hand, it was easy for Barotac Viejo Mayor Raul Tupas to concede to Gov. Art Defensor even before the proclamation.
Living in an urban space is not always a guarantee that a person is urbane and civilized.
